By Message Staff
PINEVILLE – The Voices of Louisiana College are preparing to host a benefit concert next month that organizers hope will raise thousands of dollars for construction of a children’s village in Haiti.
Scheduled 7 p.m., Feb. 1, the “Concert for the Children’s Village” is sponsored by the Louisiana Baptist Convention, Louisiana College and Louisiana Baptist Children’s Home. While no admission will be charged, a free-will offering will be taken for a cause dear to the hearts of many Louisiana Baptists, including event organizer Clark Palmer.
“Often I have seen when an institution is established to train young people in the ways of the Lord and the Gospel, that institution will have a powerful impact on the surrounding area for possibly decades to come,” said Palmer, pastor of Faith Baptist Church, Tioga. “It seems to me if we will change the nation of Haiti, it starts by changing some small area. That small area is changed by changing the children growing in that area.
“It’s like a community of believers producing another generation of God-loving, Bible-loving, Bible-believing Christians who can strengthen churches and strengthen families,” the continued. “By just going to hear some great music and … [Read more...]

By Message Staff
PINEVILLE – During the evening session of the 2018 Evangelism Conference, Brent Crowe urged hundreds of adults and youth to make sure redemption through Christ was part of the life story.
“When Jesus calls us to tell a story in our life that has redemption as the theme and the redeemer Jesus as the central character, He not only bids us to tell the story but He provides us all the resources that are necessary so that theme will be true in our lives,” said Crowe, vice president of Student Leadership University in Orlando, Fla. “If redemption is not the theme of the story we are telling in our life, then our story is not worth telling.”
Crowe spoke Jan. 22 to a packed crowd in the worship center at First Baptist Church, Pineville, while hundreds of youth watched from their home churches via a livestream broadcast during student night at ECON.
At the invitation, three students came forward to declare Christ the Lord of lives, four repented to restore fellowship with Christ, two responded to the Holy Spirit's call to vocational ministry and one made an undisclosed spiritual commitment.
Student night also featured the testimony of Kayla Sasser, a member of the youth group at Philadelphia Baptist Church, … [Read more...]

PINEVILLE – For those attending next week’s Louisiana Baptist Evangelism Conference at First Baptist Church, Pineville, parking will be somewhat limited.
According to Stewart Holloway, pastor of First Baptist, Pineville, the elementary school and city hall have given up their spaces near the church parking lot so ECON participants can park there during the duration of the conference Monday, Jan. 22, and Tuesday, Jan. 23. Street parking also will be available.
Once the parking is full, motorists will be directed to other areas in Pineville to park and take a shuttle bus to the church.
Buses transporting participants to Monday’s Student Night and Tuesday’s Senior Adult Luncheon will be asked to drop off passengers in the parking lot at the Fellowship Hall entrance. … [Read more...]

WEST MONROE – Jeff Palmer, executive director of Baptist Global Response, a non-profit Southern Baptist organization that provides hunger and disaster relief and assists in development projects worldwide, will headline the 2018 Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship annual meeting.
Scheduled to kick off 9:30 a.m., Jan. 27, at Bethel Baptist Church, West Monroe, the meeting also will include a discussion by Guilherme Prezotti, a program officer for Heifer International in Little Rock, Ark.
Other planned activities include worship and a luncheon.
The Agricultural Development Foundation will hold its winter meeting that afternoon.
The fellowship is the parent organization of the Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship.
“We are looking forward to gathering with other agriculturally mission-minded colleagues and friends for this annual event,” David Morrison, president of the Louisiana Baptist Agricultural Missions Fellowship, said in a statement via email to the Baptist Message. “The two excellent speakers we are blessed to have will enhance everyone’s interest in helping those who are chronically poor and hungry. The highlight of every annual meeting is being able to consider project proposals … [Read more...]

By Message Staff
BATON ROUGE – Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry and Louisiana Baptist church planter Louis Charrier will be among the speakers at the Louisiana Life March South in Baton Rouge Saturday, Jan. 20.
The Life March South is the first of three similar events being held across Louisiana on three consecutive weekends. The event includes a pro-life march from the State Capitol to the Levee Green on River Road, where a program of prayers, speakers and music will be held at the Levee Stage.
The Life March will begin at 10 a.m. Participants will gather a few minutes before 10 in the grassy area in front of the State Capitol, then proceed on Fourth Street to North Boulevard and then toward the riverfront.
A life ministry mobilization area at the Levee Green will be manned by area pregnancy centers and organizations, and participants can visit the tables before or after the program. The program will also feature personal testimonies from other pro-life advocates, along with music. … [Read more...]

By Brian Blackwell, Message Staff Writer
ALEXANDRIA, La. (LBM) - Thousands of Louisianans are expected to pack downtown areas across the state the next several weekends for pro-life marches and rallies:
-- Baton Rouge, Jan. 20
-- Shreveport/Bossier City, Jan. 27
-- Alexandria/Pineville, Feb. 3.
The Louisiana Life Marches are a chance for different denominations, ages and ethnic and racial backgrounds to march together and pray to declare their opposition to the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion in 1973.
The theme for this year’s marches is “Every Life Deserves A Lifetime.”
According to the Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals, preliminary numbers for 2016 show 8,972 abortions took place, an average of 25 per day. The total represents a decrease from the 9,362 abortions reported in 2015 and 10,211 abortions reported in 2014.
“We are excited about spreading the good news of the pro-life message at the 2018 Louisiana Life March events across Louisiana,” said Louisiana Right to Life Executive Director Ben Clapper . “We believe that every human life deserves a lifetime, and no matter a person's condition, age, or location, they deserve our protection. If we, as the people of … [Read more...]

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Editorial

By Jerry Pipes
Just Imagine a church or business where there is:
A culture of encouragement
True communication — focused on adding value to others
A positive atmosphere and a spirit of adventure
Members or workers who are committed to understanding first, speaking second
Healthy conflict … Continue Reading.